“We believe it’s going to be bad,” Smith said, and added with a conspiratorial wink, “there will be a lot of babies made this week.”

But such light-hearted observation comes with a great deal of anxiety that is being felt across the region. Projections of 8 to 10 feet of surging water, accompanied by an astronomical high tide, are difficult to imagine. Large areas of South Jersey are facing the threat of unprecedented immersion.

For bayside villages along the upper reaches of the Delaware Bay’s eastern shore, the extent of flooding will be determined by where the storm lands.

“If the wind stays out of the west we’ll be OK,” said Smith.

Downe Township mayor Bob Campbell echoed those sentiments.

“If the wind stays west,” will be a popular refrain in the coming days. Heavy winds blowing up the bay from the south and east could potentially drive the high tide far upriver, inundating inland areas. Combined with heavy rain, flooding could become endemic in short order.

Along South Cove Road in Gandy’s Beach, the township has erected more than 700 feet of concrete retaining wall in preparation, and has stashed concrete blocks in staging areas around the island, and other vulnerable places throughout Downe.

But such measures are in place to protect property, if possible. As for people, Campbell strongly urges evacuation. Saturday night, fire and rescue personnel canvassed the township distributing information about shelters, food, water and ice locations and phone numbers where additional information regarding emergency services can be attained.

During the sweep, township officials advised residents and homeowners that evacuation is strongly recommended, and that there would be no rescue personnel available for those who choose to remain after the storm enters the area.

By early Sunday afternoon, nearly everyone in Gandy’s Beach, as well as nearby Money Island and Fortescue, Downe’s island communities, had evacuated.

Among the last to leave was Wayne Keif, a native of West Chester, Pa., who owns a summer home on Gandy’s Beach.

Keif was making last-minute preparations to safeguard his property before making his egress.

“This is going to be the last tide to get off the island,” he said. “Even the low tide is over the road now.”

For houses at the very edge of the bay, the tide is the biggest concern.

“With the full moon, even when it's calm the tide is going to be higher than normal, and you add maybe 8 feet to that,” Keif explained.

“The house is 14 feet above the normal high-tide level, and I’m anticipating water up to the bottom of the house.”

In the 15 years he has owned the property, Keif has seen some high tides and furious storms, but Sandy could over-top them all.

Up the coast a little ways, Salem County is also busy making provision for the impending storm of the century.

Sean Elwell is the mayor of Elsinboro Township, which is located between Salem City and Alloway Creek.

Throughout the day Sunday, Elwell and emergency personnel were out making preparations.

“We got sandbags out to a large number of residents” said Elwell. “We were also able to ensure that our catch basins and drainage areas are clear so they can catch all the water they can.”

Anchor Glass Container Plant in Salem has sand bags and a generator in place before the storm's arrival. (Staff Photo by Cathy Cramer)

Elsinboro has many low-lying areas, especially along Alloway Creek, and while the storm’s impact is not expected to be as severe there as along the coast, residents are still encouraged to have plenty of supplies and evacuation plans in place.

“We have to hope for the best and plan for the worst,” said Elwell.

Having an evacuation plan in place is especially important for residents in the township’s more flood-prone areas.

As in Elsinboro, so it is across all of Salem County.

“I think we are as prepared as we can be,” said Jeff Pompper, director of the Salem County Department of Emergency Management on the eve of the storm.

A briefing at OEM headquarters in Mannington Sunday night brought together county freeholders, department heads, municipal emergency management coordinators and representatives from industry, utility companies, and local and state law enforcement.

Pompper said the latest weather data in Sunday night showed the county would be facing winds sustained at 35 to 50 mph for a 24- to 48-hour period with gusts up to 75 mph.

Nine to 10 inches of rain was expected during the storm with 10 to 12 foot tides on the Delaware Bay

Officials stressed that emergency and utility crews won’t be sent out into the storm if conditions become too dangerous.

Atlantic City Electric will not dispatch repair teams if sustained winds reach the 35 mph mark.

In Salem County, if winds reach a sustained speed of 45 mph, the county emergency dispatch center will not send out fire or rescue crews. Any calls will be forwarded from the 911 center to local emergency management coordinators for them to decide whether to dispatch help.

The coming storm has already brought many closures.

All area schools will be closed today and Tuesday. Salem Community College will shut down as well.

Government offices at the local, county and state levels will be closed Monday and Tuesday.

Salem County emergency officials have been calling on people living in low-lying areas to voluntarily evacuate their homes. Pompper said Sunday night many have headed the warnings.

There has been no word yet on mandatory evacuations.

One point that Pompper and others have stressed is that if people decide to stay put in flood-prone areas and there is an emergency, there will be no guarantee help will get to them.

A shelter for the county opened at Salem Community College in Carneys Point Sunday night.

The Carneys Point Care Center, a nursing home on the shore of the Delaware River in Carneys Point, has already evacuated its 100 residents to higher ground.

Pompper noted that one-third of the county — the most populated area — lies in a flood zone.

So far the county has distributed 1,000 sand bags to municipalities that have requested them.

While the county has been under a state of emergency since Friday at 2 p.m., no travel bans have been imposed. That could change, Pompper said, depending on storm conditions.

According to information gathered from the New Jersey State Police, troopers will not be available if wind speeds exceed 40 mph, so it is strongly advised that wherever residents decide to ride out Sandy, that they remain there and off the roads if possible.